Can I rehabilitate my chicken killing puppy?

[ellieroo]

Quote:
Knowledge, skill and patience have nothing to do with it....I have had trainers work with me and my dog and between us all we had All that......when a dog has that In him, I don't care what Anyone says, you Cannot take it out and if someone tells her diff they are just taking her money. I have been around dogs my whole life and have worked in veterinary offices for 25 years, I do know dogs very well and as much as I'd like to say that you can completely change a dog and he will Not kill another chicken, it's not going to happen....I couldn't get rid of mine so I made adjustments, when he is out the chickens are in their run, when I know he will be in for hours I let them free range, Ive gotten so used to doing it that it's no big deal. I just could not get rid of him, he is so bonded to us and not thrilled with strangers I knew he would not do well if he were placed.

This is an excellent post. Usually I would say training might work but in this case it went passed that point. Now it is up to owner to protect chickens from GSD and the dog from his instincts!

 

[gocrow77]

I also have a German Shepherd - two of them(one is a pup). When mine was younger I would let him come into the coop and do chore rounds with me. He laid down submissive and relaxed in the presence of my chickens, chicks, bantam breeds - didn't matter. But, when a herding dog matures their prey instinct "turns on" - this is used to the shepherds advantage usually when the dog can be trained to guard and drive sheep. Mine "turned on" at about 7 months old - just in time for spring. However, with small animals and poultry, the dog can't be so rough - the chickens won't survive it like a sheep would. I now make my dog stay outside of the pen/coop area. I "claim" all the critters as "mine" and define a boundary around them and their area that I will correct him if he gets too close or gets too focused on them. He's pretty good when I am outside with him. But, I would never under any circumstance allow my other animals (have rabbits too) to be with him unsupervised. If the dogs are out the chickens are up and secure. They do a wonderful job of patrolling my pens - I have had predator problems in the past, no losses this year. I would be lost without my GSDs and my chickens would be too. It is your breeds natural instinct to herd and drive livestock. I have found a terrific site - not all of it is in German so don't get scared - that explains the prey drive and herding instinct in GSDs. Here is the link:

http://www.german-shepherdherding.com/

 

[schellie69]

Quote:
Knowledge, skill and patience have nothing to do with it....I have had trainers work with me and my dog and between us all we had All that......when a dog has that In him, I don't care what Anyone says, you Cannot take it out and if someone tells her diff they are just taking her money. I have been around dogs my whole life and have worked in veterinary offices for 25 years, I do know dogs very well and as much as I'd like to say that you can completely change a dog and he will Not kill another chicken, it's not going to happen....I couldn't get rid of mine so I made adjustments, when he is out the chickens are in their run, when I know he will be in for hours I let them free range, Ive gotten so used to doing it that it's no big deal. I just could not get rid of him, he is so bonded to us and not thrilled with strangers I knew he would not do well if he were placed.

Great post. I agree My son has a husky no way I will ever trust her around my chickens. My son loves his dog I would not ask him to give her up just like he won't ask me to give up my chickens so we make sure that they can not be around each other. It takes some work but its worth it. To the OP I hope you find the answer that works for you. I would make sure to keep the chickens and puppy away from each other.

 

[ChickieBooBoo]

I have a German Shephard like that, we even had a trainer come out and work with him. Nothing worked

 

[Bev in Nevada]

GSD's are dogs that usually have a great deal of drive, when "chasing" an animal or other live being, that drive turns into prey drive. Something that those of us (like myself) LOVE in dogs because we compete in Schutzhund. There are people who have herding breeds that do not have a lot of drive....those dogs can and do live well with other animals. (no matter the breed or the "group") Someone with a Jack Russell Terrier, could/might have the same problem as the original poster on this topic, yet a person with a Jack with no drive would have no issues. Point being, it does not matter the breed or size. The dog either has prey drive or it doesnt.
A person CANNOT take drive out of a dog, it is the dogs core....it is what they are. Some have drive, some do not.
The ONLY safe option for all involved is to have a dog yard separated from the chicken yard. I live on one acre out in Timbucktwo. I have Border Collies and Belgian Malinois. They get to go into the dog run (1/4 acre fenced in with tree's and grass) when I cannot supervise them, when I am out with them, then they get to be on the rest of the property with me. The chicken yard is the 1/4 acre fenced in on the other side of the house, the dogs dont even get to see them......In my opinion and years of training dogs in Competition Obedience and Schutzhund, this is totally a "maintenance" issue. All family members must be on the same page. Dog + Chickens = dead chickens in this case......they MUST be separated at all times, for the entire time the dog lives on the property. just my humble opinion.

 

[Mojo]

You might see if you can borrow a shock collar. I am borrowing one that has a function of shock and bad sound/ and bad sound. A few times of the first, you only need the sound later. I would still keep very close tabs on the dog. The collar needs to be very snug. You might dampen the hair where it sits on the neck. Will the dog move toward the chickens while they are behind their fence? Then, they can be sure to be safe when you try. But, the collars are fast and very effective and I have used one to train a dog to not molest chickens. It only took one time. I don't think you should have to use it very much to instill a good dose of discouragement.

 

[goldtopper]

Definetly a shock collar!
My choc lab wears one. Once she gets too close to the chickens, she gets a very light correction. Any closer, the level goes up. After a bit, she just wears it without it being turned on, she doesn't know.
She is a hunter- Just this week she worked all day on pointing/retrieving chukars and pheasants. We came home and she still knows the difference between chickens and game birds.
I haven't had a problem since.

 

[Chihuahuamom444]

Quote:
It will only work when you're there to shock him and he'll know that, he can still never be trusted alone with them

I don't agree with or use shock collars....just don't like them

 

[Missouri Chicken Chick]

An easy answer is "no". The only time I have ever seen a normally predatory dog NOT attack chickens is if it was actually raised with the chickens from a VERY early age, but that involves raising the dog basically right along with the chickens, actually in the pen with them, which is hard to do if you want an actual "pet."

I am sorry for your loss. Best idea would be to constantly keep the dog in some sort of enclosure or vice versa. I will say, however, that once they have attacked once, they will stop at nothing to get at the chickens again. I have seen dogs bloody their paws and mouths digging and biting through chicken wire to get at chickens. Not trying to be negative, just saying that it is the dog's instinct to hunt and it's going to do what comes naturally.

 

[Peck Johnson]

Many conflicting views on this.

My experiences:

I had a husky growing up who got me in trouble a couple times when it got loose and went after a neighbors chickens. I would never have trusted her with birds. But this was before I had chickens of my own.

Seven years ago, we bought our property and there was a stray dog living in the woods, presumably killing and scavenging to stay alive. The best we could tell from its looks, we believe that it was a husky/shepherd mix. This dog was absolutely feral and it took 10 months to win her trust enough to even get her to come close enough to be pet. We named her "Ghost" because she was mostly white and would appear and disappear. When we got chickens 2 years later we figured that would present an easy mealtime. We spent a lot of time watching her and eventually introduced the chickens. Her immediate reaction was to go in for the kill. I stopped her, held her, and in my most serious tone said "DON'T EVEN (explitive) THINK OF IT." Several months later, after much supervision, the chickens were free range. Our stray dog, Ghost, against its "instincts" and its experience never touched a single bird in the next 2 years while she was alive. She was an awesome dog.

After Ghost had to be put to sleep due to kidney failure we got a Maremma Sheepdog, a breed that has centuries of guard breeding and a low prey drive. This dog has been free range with our chickens for the past two years without incident.

SUMMARY: Your dog is still a puppy. It can probably be trained to respect the birds. But plan on spending a lot of time supervising. The dog must be allowed to interact in the same space. Any alert attention (eyes, ears, and shoulders forward; staring) directed at the birds must be corrected immediately. If a wild adult dog can learn, almost any dog can, especially a smart dog like a GS. I am not saying it will be easy but DON'T GIVE UP YET!

Our Maremma with his flock.